South Korean Restaurants Near The Olympic Stadium Still Serving Dog Meat

Restaurants near to the Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium are still serving dog meat soup - despite the South Korean government's request to take it off the menu during the Winter Olympics.

Twelve restaurants serve dog meat in Pyeongchang County and local authorities are said to have offered the restaurants subsidies in exchange for ditching the controversial dish, reports the Sun.

Despite the incentives on offer from local government, so far only two of the 12 restaurants have complied, with the remaining 10 continuing to support the brutal dog meat trade.

Credit: PA

"We've faced a lot of complaints from restaurant operators that we are threatening their livelihood," Pyeongchang County government official Lee Yong-bae told AFP.

"Some of them initially shifted to selling pork or things instead of dog meat only to find their sales plunging sharply. They then switched back to dog meat."

Local authorities are believed to have encouraged restaurants to replace signs advertising dog meat dishes with those advertising more neutral dishes such as goat meat.

Lee added that this was to avoid giving 'a bad impression to foreigners' while the Games are underway.

WATCH DOGS BEING SAVED FROM THE DOG MEAT TRADE BELOW:

South Koreans have traditionally eaten dog meat for centuries, usually boiling it with chillies and serving with vegetables in a soup as a summertime meal.

While the practice is diminishing - particularly among younger generations - it is still common in the country, with Koreans estimated to eat around one million dogs a year.

The dog meat trade has sparked fierce criticism from animal rights campaigners, particularly for how brutally the dogs are treated. This includes farming them, keeping them in cages and electrocuting them.

While the South Korean government officially classes dog meat as 'detestable' and discourages the practice, there aren't yet any laws to ban the sale of it outright.

Protestors against the dog meat trade in Los Angeles. Credit: PA

There are several campaigns already underway to ban dog consumption in South Korea including protests in the capital city Seoul and petitions urging boycotts of this year's Winter Olympics.

Even athletes are protesting against the practice, such as Canadian figure skater Meagan Duhamel who won a silver medal at the last Winter Olympics in Sochi.

Duhamel has already rescued two dogs in order to save them from the dog meat trade and is encouraging her fellow athletes to do the same.

The two-time world champion is also planning to volunteer her time to Humane Society International, a charity committed to closing dog meat farms, once she is done competing in this year's Games.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Chris Ogden

Chris Ogden is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from the University of East Anglia with degrees in English Literature and Creative Writing before completing his NCTJ Diploma in Multimedia Journalism. Chris has previously written for the independent culture magazine The Skinny, among other publications.

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